The use of processed cattle hooves as a dog chew is well-known. They are high in protein and low in fat and have been found to be very appealing to dogs. A method for processing cattle hooves for such use is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,985,964 and 5,007,879. The process disclosed therein generally comprises the steps of cleaning the hoof to remove any debris therein, removing the upper brittle edge of the hoof, removing a thin portion of the bottom of the hoof pad with a saw blade, and finally boiling, rinsing and drying the hoof. It has been found that by thoroughly cleaning the hoof, removal of a portion of the pad is not necessary, leaving the hoof with a more natural appearance and the entire pad, which is the portion of the hoof which seems to be most preferred by dogs.
While cattle hoof dog chews are quite popular, they have been found to occasionally fracture along their thin side walls producing sharp fragments which present a safety hazard to the dog. The tendency of a cattle hoof to fracture while being chewed by a dog results not only because of the relatively thin side wall of the hoof but because of the natural cavity therein. The cavity in the hoof allows a dog to position either its lower or upper teeth within the hoof so that the dog can firmly grip the side wall of the hoof between its upper and lower teeth and exert sufficient leverage against the wall while chewing, that a fracture occurs.
In addition to the safety hazard resulting from the nature hoof configuration, cattle hooves tend to be too small for many dogs to readily position the hoof with their paws for chewing in the typical dog-like fashion. As a result, dogs will often loose interest in the hoof as a chew toy. Because of the apparent appealing taste of cattle hooves to dogs and the fact that such hooves are quite nutritious, it would be highly desirable to provide a hoof dog chew which retains all of the benefits of nature cattle hooves but which eliminated the safety hazard posed by the hoof configuration. It would also be beneficial if such a dog chew could be designed such that it could be more readily manipulated by the dog for chewing. The present invention not only achieves these results but also incorporates the therapeutic gum and tooth flossing benefits found in cotton rope chew toys such as that marketed by applicant under the trademark BOODA BONES which is the subject of a pending U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 421,006.